Roll-up venetian blind



Aug. 14, 1951 c. w. HOLBROOK ROLL-UP VENETIAN BLIND 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 8, 1949 INVENTOR. Charles W. Ho/broc BY e .QAM AW Patented Aug. 14, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ROLL-UP VENE'IIAN BLIND Charles Warren Holbrook, San Quentin, Calif,

Application April 8, 1949, Serial No. 86,369

3 Claims. 1

I This invention relates to improvements in blinds and has particular reference to Venetian blinds.

The principal object of. this invention is to provide a blind of this character which may be raised or lowered in the same manner as an ordinary window shade is raised and lowered, thus eliminating the customary cords employed for the raising and lowering of the ordinary Veneian blind.

A further object is to provide a. blind wherein the slats maybe opened or closed in either direction. A further object is to provide means whereby a portion of the slats may be opened while the remainder of the slats may be held in closed position.

A further object is to provide means for supporting the slats in such a manner that there is complete privacy, in contradistinction to some types of Venetian blinds wherein the tape openings or cord. openings permit visibility therethrough, even when turned to closed position.

A further object is to produce a Venetian blind which is economical to manufacture and one which eliminates the use of the expensive ladderlike type supporting tapes.

A still further object is to produce a Venetian blind which is neat in appearance and less unsightly, as far as the supporting webs and cords are concerned.

Other objects and advantages will beapparent during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

Fig. I is a front elevation, with portions thereof broken away,

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of Fig. 1, looking from the right of the drawing,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary end elevation, showing a portion of the slats in closed position and the other of the slats in open position,

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view on an enlarged scale, showing the tilting cords and one 1 of the supporting we'bs,

Fig. 5 is a similar view, showing the supporting roller and tilting member, and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view, taken on the line 6--6 of Fig. 1.

In the ordinary Venetian blind, the slats are elevated through the use of pull cords extending over suitable spaced pulleys and having their lower ends connected to the bottom board of the blind, and the slats are supported by a plurality of widetape ladders which pass along the front and the back of the slats. These tapes are very unsightly and do not permit the individual adjustment of certain of the slats. In other words, all of the slats must be either in open position or in closed position.

With applicants device it is possible to elimihate these unsightly tapes and, in turn, to substitute narrow tapes which are mounted within the blind and passed through the individual slats, which tapes are, in turn, secured to a spring roller and serve to raise and lower the shade as a whole in the same manner as the raising and lowering of an ordinary spring-controlled shade.

With applicants device, the tilting is effected by inconspicuous cords wrapped around the adjacent slats and controlled by a tilting member.

Referring to the accompanying drawings in detail, wherein, for the purpose of illustration, is shown a preferred embodiment of my invention, the numerals 5 and 6 refer to ordinary shade roller brackets and serve to support a spring shade roller I, the spring being designated at 8.

Pivotally mounted on the supporting ends of the shade roller isa tilting member 9. In the present instance, this tilting member is an inverted U-shape in cross section, as shown in Fig. 6, but may be of any other shape; as, for instance, semi-circular in cross section. The purpose of this tilting member will be later described.

Attached to the roller I are spaced tapes H and (2, which tapes pass downwardly through slots l3, formed in the slats l4, and have their lower ends attached to a bottom rail [6. To the bottom rail I attach a pull ring 15, or any other desired means whereby the bottom rail may be grasped for the purpose of raising and lowering the same against the tension of the springB of the roller 1.

From the description thus far, it will be apparent that the shade, as a whole, can be raised or lowered in the same manner as an ordinary spring-actuated window shade. However, the slats would not remain spaced from each other.

In order to accomplish this spacing, I attach to the tiltin member 9 adjacent each end of the shade, a cord H, which has its medial point secured as shown at I8 (see Fig. 6) and has its ends secured as shown at H] and 2|, to the under side of the top slat A of the shade.

The next slat B is spaced from the top slat A by cords 22, having their ends overlapped and secured, as shown at 23, to the top of the slat A. These cords 22, are not attached to the slat B,

shown at 26, to the top of the slat B and passing under the slat C, forming slings, as above described. In this manner the various slats are supported, one beneath the other.

In order to move the tilting member, I attach to the end thereof a pulley 21, over which a tilting cord 28 passes and is attached thereto, as by a securing element 29.

It is, of course, obvious that, after my blind is installed the ordinary ornamental molding or boxing may be placed thereover so as to conceal the roller and tilting mechanism.

In use, and assuming that the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1, the user grasps the ring l5 and, after a slight downward movement, release of pressure will permit the spring 8 to function and will cause the tapes II and I2 to be wound upon the roller 1, s that the upward movement of th bottom rail will cause all of the slats to be collapsed against each other and to assume a nested position directly beneath the roller.

When it is desired to pull the blind down, it may be pulled down any desired distance; as, for instance, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and at this point the expanded or separated slats may be tilted into closed position, either upwardly or downwardly, by pulling on one of the strands of the cord 28, which will rotate th tilting member, as shown in Fig. 3.

By now pulling on the ring 15, to further extend the blind downwardly and assuming that the previous slats have been turned, then the bottom slats, instead of being turned, as in an ordinary Venetian blind, will remain parallel with the bottom rail, as shown in the lower portion of Fig. 3. Thus, with my blind, a portion of the sam may be in open position while the remainder of the blind is in closed position.

If it is desired to close a portion of the bottom of the blind, the blind is pulled down with all of the slats in a horizontal plane and then the user merely manually turns the top slat of the portion that he wishes closed; as, for instance, the fifth slat from the bottom, and the slats below will all move to closed position, thus leaving the top of the blind open and the bottom closed.

This tilting of certain of the slats without moving the next adjacent slat is brought about entirely by the fact that each slat is individually supported in slings from the slat above, which permits a freedom of movement not possible with the old styl of ladder-like operation.

It will thus be seen that I have produced a device which will accomplish all of the objects above set forth.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown and described is to be taken as a preferred example of the same and that various changes relative to the material, size, shape and arrangement of parts may be resorted to Without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A blind of the Venetian blind type, including a plurality of vertically spaced slats, a tilting member positioned above the uppermost slat, means for supporting the uppermost slat from said tilting member and individual slings interposed between the uppermost slat and the next slat therebelow, each successive lower slat being individually sling supported from the next above slat, each of said slats being rotatably supported in its respective sling.

2. A blind of the Venetian blind type including a tilting member tiltably supported at the upper end of'the blind, spaced controlling tapes, a bottom rail, said tapes having their lower ends se cured to the bottom rail, a plurality of slats positioned between said tilting member and said rail and slidably mounted on said tapes, means for connecting said tilting member to the uppermost of said slats, whereby rotation of said tilting member will rotate said attached slat, and slings interposed between said top slat and the next adjacent slat, said slings being secured to said top slat and slidably supporting the suspended slat, and similar slings interposed between each of the succeeding slats.

3. A blind of the Venetian blind type, including a bottom rail positioned at the bottom of the blind, spaced tapes having their upper ends secured to a rail lifting means and having their lower ends secured to said bottom rail, a plurality of slotted slats slidably positioned on said tapes, a tilting member rotatably supported above the blind, and individual suspending slings interposed between each of said slats, said slings being secured to the upper of the adjacent slats and freely suspending the lower of the adjacent slats, whereby the suspending slats are slidably and tiltably supported in the slings.

CHARLES WARREN HOLBRO OK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENT Number Name Date 255,538 Ruhr Mar. 28, 1882 1,816,500 Steffen July 28, 1931 2,266,160 Burns Dec. 16, 1941 2,303,939 Kahn Dec. 1, 1942 

